Research | Penn Today

Special mud rubbed on all MLB baseballs has unique, ‘magical’ properties, study finds

A study by Douglas Jerolmack of the School of Arts & Sciences and School of Engineering and Applied Science and colleagues has uncovered the mechanical properties of the mud used to coat Major League baseballs.

Baltimore gave $61M — 10% — of its COVID funds to public safety. Where did it go?

A study from the Crime and Justice Policy Lab at the School of Arts & Sciences estimates that Baltimore’s Group Violence Reduction Strategy reduced homicides and shootings in the city’s western police district by about a quarter and reduced carjackings by about a third.

The science that makes baseball mud ‘magical’

Philly’s soda tax may improve the city’s obesity rate – in time, Penn study says

A Penn Medicine study suggests there’s some evidence that Philadelphia’s soda tax could slow obesity over time.

Textile energy grid charges wirelessly, can transform wearables, eradicate battery needs

A collaborative team including researchers from Penn has used nanomaterials to develop the next generation of textiles that support wireless charging technology.

Who, What, Why

Who, What, Why: Cice Chen’s first-of-its-kind research conference for undergraduates

Cice Chen, a fourth-year chemistry, biochemistry, and neurobiology major in the College of Arts and Sciences, played a leading role in organizing the student-run National Research Conference at Penn.

Two ancient Hebrew bibles open on a table.

A monumental view of the Ten Commandments

Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures Assistant Professor Timothy Hogue sees the foundational text as more than just words.

Researchers pose next to a box they fabricated for recording fly courtship.

Finding a new behavioral adaptation in fruit flies

Penn researchers discovered “wing spreading” in Drosophila santomea, research that hints at a rare, novel finding and offers insights into an underrepresented area in sexual reproduction research: female-initiated behaviors.

Network schematic of peoples' browsing activity on Wikipedia.

Studying Wikipedia browsing habits to learn how people learn

A collaborative team of researchers analyzed the information-seeking styles of more than 480,000 people from 50 countries and found that gender and education inequality track different types of knowledge exploration. Their findings suggest potential cultural drivers of curiosity and learning.

California’s plan to overhaul a key climate program—raising the cost of gas—ignites debate

A report by Danny Cullenward of the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the Weitzman School of Design predicted that changes to a California climate program could increase the cost of gas by 85 cents a gallon through 2030.

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